Henry Polie “Butterfly Maiden”

ARTWORK DESCRIPTION

Palhik Mana is a Butterfly Maiden, not a Katsina, but a woman dancer. She generally appears in August, as that is when the butterflies appear. The Butterfly Dance, a traditional social dance of the Hopi, is held in August after the gathering of the harvest and presentation of the Snake Dance. It is a thanksgiving dance for the harvest, chiefly for the corn crop and features dancing by young Hopi maidens. These sculptures are carved by Randolph in three sizes. They are beautiful tributes to the women in our lives.